Dinneen, Hanlon spark season-opening victory

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The Salve Regina University men's basketball squad tipped off the 2013-14 campaign with a 73-68 victory against intra-state rival Johnson & Wales University at the Wildcat Center on Friday evening.

Sophomore Barrett Hanlon (Hopkinton, Mass.) led the way for Salve Regina with 23 points, five steals and four rebounds while senior Patrick Dinneen (Medfield, Mass.) had 18 points and four boards in the win for the Seahawks.

Johnson & Wales was led by sophomore Quarry Greenaway (Westchester, N.Y.) with 31 points, eight rebounds and four assists while senior Matt Barboza (Riverside, R.I.) had 15 points, three boards and three assists in the setback.

Johnson & Wales raced out to the early lead and held a 13-5 advantage on a layup by sophomore Robert Lewis (Providence, R.I.) at the 13:42 mark.  Salve Regina responded, however and used a 10-2 run, capped by a layup by Hanlon with 11:11 left in the stanza.

The visiting Seahawks continued their run and used an 18-8 burst over the next eight minutes to take their first double-digit advantage on a layup by freshman Nicholas Bates (Danvers, Mass.). Salve Regina took the 40-25 lead heading into the locker room at halftime after connecting on 51.7% (15-29) of their shots from the field.  JWU shot just 35.5% (11-31) and had 13 turnovers in the stanza.

JWU controlled the action to start the second half and came out of the gate on a 17-2 run to tie the game 42-42 on a three-pointer by Barboza with 13:21 remaining.  The two teams then traded baskets with Salve Regina leading 52-49 with just under eight minutes left on the clock.  An 11-3 run for the Seahawks, capped by a layup from Hanlon with 2:20 remaining pushed the lead back to double figures at 63-54.  Salve Regina would then hold on for the 73-68 victory.

With the loss the Wildcats are 0-1 on the season while Salve Regina moves to 1-0 on the year.  The Wilcats will return to action on Tuesday, November 19 when they host Roger Williams in a non-conference contest at 7 p.m.; the Seahawks tip-off against Connecticut College Camels at the Rodgers Recreation Center at 7:30 p.m.